Lindsey Elizabeth Cortes shares her take on the 2025–2030 USDA Dietary Guidelines released in 2026, explaining how the USDA updates them every five years and how they affect downstream food policy. She says the new inverted food pyramid and “eat real food” messaging feel more like marketing than a true 180, though she appreciates that the guidelines are shortened to 10 pages.
From a sports dietetics lens, she critiques the low grain/carbohydrate guidance as inadequate for athletes, recommends past episodes on carbs, sugar, and during-training fuel, and notes athletes may need some refined carbs to avoid excessive fiber and GI issues. She likes the increased protein target (1.2–1.6 g/kg), the more permissive tone on whole fats despite a still-low saturated fat cap, and the stronger “limit alcohol” message, and discusses potential implications for SNAP, school lunches, and ultra-processed foods.
Episode Highlights:
- 01:22 WaveBye Sponsor Break
- 03:00 USDA Guidelines Overview
- 04:21 What USDA Does
- 06:08 Food Pyramid to MyPlate
- 08:30 Inverted Pyramid Marketing
- 12:57 Eat Real Food Message
- 15:23 10 Page Guidelines Shift
- 16:24 Carb Limits for Athletes
- 19:31 Whole Grains vs Refined Fuel
- 19:57 Fiber and GI Reality Check
- 22:29 RED-S Check In and Resources
- 23:18 RED-S Recovery Options
- 24:18 Why Community Support Matters
- 25:02 Protein Targets Updated
- 27:15 Whole Fats And Saturated Fat
- 31:41 Alcohol Guidance Shift
- 35:58 Policy Ripple Effects
- 37:52 SNAP And Food Quality
- 40:50 Biggest Takeaways
- 42:02 Blame On Individuals
- 44:27 Final Thanks And Resources
- Dietary Guidelines For Americans
- FANP Episode 103: Stop Cutting The Carbs!
- FANP Episode 248: The Science of Sugar for Athlete Performance & Health: Clarifying Natural vs Artificial vs Added
- FANP Episode 195: Fast Fueling Facts: During Training Sports Nutrition
- For more information about the show, head to work with Lindsey on improving your nutrition, head to: http://www.lindseycortes.com/
- Join REDS Recovery Membership: http://www.lindseycortes.com/reds
- WaveBye Supplements – Menstrual cycle support code LindseyCortes for 15% off: http://wavebye.co
- Previnex Supplements – Joint Health Plus, Muscle Health Plus, plant-based protein, probiotics, and more; code CORTES15 for 15% off: previnex.com
- Female Athlete Nutrition Podcast Archive & Search Tool – Search by sport, condition, or topic: lindseycortes.com/podcast
- Female Athlete Nutrition Community – YouTube, Instagram @femaleathletenutrition, and private Facebook group
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